20 gallon sump design. help!?

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silentskream

AC Members
May 16, 2004
1,860
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36
Florida
we're turning our 55gal into saltwater.
I've got a 20 gallon long glass tank that i want to use as a sump, but i dont really know where to begin. I've looked around and done some searching through this website, but i feel like I really need a walkthrough.

here's what i've got so far:
use a powerhead to pump the water from the tank to the 20gal.
separate the 20 gal into several compartments (3?)
in the 3rd compartment, put a pump to push the water back up to the tank.

now.. what do i put in the compartments?
does it need a cover?
how do i make sure that the water doesn't flood my apartment if the power cuts off or if something goes wrong?

we're planning on this being a FO tank, if that helps.
 

Riverserver

i r 2pro4u
Apr 13, 2007
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No, don't use a powerhead to pump anything into your sump. Because if your return pump fails, your house will flood. What you need is an overflow, they're several means of doing this, a lot of people like "U-tubes" better than they like the overflow boxes.

The separators in the sump are called baffles and keep water at a constant level throughout the sump, the only portion that shows evaporation will be in the return section of the sump. So that is where you want to put your auto top off. Most people have 3 sections in the sump for a skimmer, refugium, and return pump.

For the return pump, pick a quality pump like a Ehiem or MagDrive. Because you're just going to end up buying something better down the road if you don't, and the long term costs can get you really bad if you cheap out at the start.

You don't want a cover for the sump, but you might want a cover on the refugium section to rest your light on. The lighting fixture you can put together at Home Depot or Lowes for $15. You just need a 6500K or 5100K light bulb and a basic fixture with a reflector.

I'm doing a 20 gallon long sump conversion here pretty soon, so if you're not planning on starting this within the next 2 weeks you should stay tuned for my thread:
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=124088

The link Grins posted will be much help to you. But feel free to ask any questions to double check, better safe than sorry :)
 
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silentskream

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May 16, 2004
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Florida
so the "U-Tubes" are kinda like permanent syphons? and i would assume that if the pump stopped running it would also stop sucking water out of the top tank.

can industrial pumps work? like the submersible basement kind? i can get one of those really cheap if its an option.

i was going to start building next week.. but i certainly dont mind going slowly so i can see how you do it. i'm not in a huge rush.. i'd rather get this done right than quickly.

oh yeah.. and what's a refugium and how does that work? what do i have to buy for that?
 
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Riverserver

i r 2pro4u
Apr 13, 2007
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The overflows only siphon water from the surface so when the water level drops below the overflow because your pump stopped (power outage), it stops the siphon and holds water in a suspended state and your sump doesn't flood. When your pump comes back on the tank water level rises again and the siphon starts up again.

It would be better if you used a pump intended for aquarium use. A good Ehiem pump is less than $70.

A refugium is a safe place for all those critters that wont make it in your main tank, because they'll be eaten. You'll hear the term copepods or 'pods a lot, they're really small bugs (flea size) that end up as food for most fish. Macro algae also, it will help export nutrients keeping your tank quality top notch. To get a solid refugium going all you need is a 5100K or 6500K light, a substrate (preferably 3" or more deep), and a macro algae to export nitrates.

Now that I think about it, are you going to be using RO/DI water? If not, have you had your tap water tested?
 
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silentskream

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May 16, 2004
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Florida
we haven't tested our water, but knowing this town's water quality, i'm guessing it's not going to be a good idea to use it. but just for kicks, what do i need to test for? copper? phosphates? hardness?

i'm *kinda* considering getting an RO unit.. but i dont really know where i would put it (we have enough difficulty finding room for all the fishtanks.. much less some RO water containers)
the only saltwater lfs nearby closed down a couple months ago.. the closest place is about an hour away and they sell it for 66cents a gallon. not a bad price, but not worth the $60 in gas it takes to drive there. (i tried using RO water for a South American Cichlid tank, that's the only reason i know this)
there's rumors of a new place opening nearby in the not-too-distant-future. but who knows.

So i'm looking at the eheim pumps.. the 1250 is 320 gph and it's $70.. what is "max head"?
is the inlet/outlet the size of the hose that we'd need to use?
 

Riverserver

i r 2pro4u
Apr 13, 2007
776
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0
Copper is the major one to test for as well as other heavy metals. You really should consider the RO/DI unit most additives and conditioners will drive your skimmer crazy with foam, you can get a really good one for $130, here's one a lot of folks are happy with:
http://cgi.ebay.com/AQUARIUM-2-110G...ryZ20756QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Max head is the maximum distance the pump can push water straight up, the 1250 is 6.5ft. The 1250 uses the 12/16mm metric, which is about 1/2" American. With some force you can fit a 1/2" PVC pipe over the return connector, and PVC cement will help make the seal. I did just that so I could shop for 1/2" parts, which are a lot easier to find lol.

Hopefully I'll be able to update my nano tank thread this weekend for you, I'll let you know when I do.
 
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AnDr3w

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Apr 29, 2007
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Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
There is a lot easier cheaper methods. If you want me to show you just ask and ill put some pix up but I dont want to put pix on without you wanting them and make your thread all cluttered.
 
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